Peppermint
by suikalopolis
Summary: [HIATUS] AU Untied shoelaces. Peppermint rolls. An overly cramped train compartment. And one purely accidental kiss. What a great way to meet someone. Zack/Cloud


**Summary:** [AU] Untied shoelaces, an unruly mop of hair and an unfortunate ride in an overly cramped train compartment. For a moment, it looked like it was just another ordinary day for the aloof florist. That is, before he found himself lip-locked with the passenger beside him. An obnoxiously cheerful one to boot. [ZxC]

**A/N:** Strange isn't it? How one suddenly has the urge to whip up a story in the weirdest moments and places. Apparently Suika had emerged with this little unprompted plot bunny when she randomly _stared_ at her soup (read: red-brown _gloop_) in a restaurant one afternoon after school. It was weird. Nevertheless, I supposeit's because my ever beloved dahling **Koshi Noriko** merely rubbed her fetish obsession of the juicy pairing **ZackxCloud** on me over the past year. But hey, you have to admit. Zack plus Cloud equals mucho **cuteness**. They are simply too cute that you just want to **stomp** on them. Really hard. So yeah, a first attempt of writing a new fandom and a new pairing. Enjoy ZC fans. Spread the BL love. XD

**Pairings:** Exclusively Zack/Cloud…although a side dish Zack/Aerith is also delectable enough to munch on.

**Warnings:** Horrendous rebirths of clichés, cheesy chat-up lines (which I do not own), profanity (do pardon Cid) and my guilty pleasure: shōnen-ai. Oh, and the characters _might _be OOC due to do the fact that I've never finished playing VII or that I haven't played CC (just watched a few cut scenes) so if I've bent the characters _too _much, it's simply done to suit this AU setting.

**Disclaimer:** Final Fantasy VII and its kick-ass characters rightly belong to Nomura-sensei. Oh, how I glorify thee!

* * *

Smooth black.

Gentle gold.

The train rumbled, rushing through long stretches of dark tunnels.

There was a gradual widening of deep blue eyes.

And a revolted twitch of pale nimble fingers, unconsciously clutching the rough material of foreign dark denim jeans.

His lips quivered.

_**Oh God.**_

A splash of pink soon flourished across pale smooth cheeks.

_No WAY._

Cloud stared back into equally surprised light blue eyes, absolutely **horrified**.

_Crap. Crap. CRAP_.

Of all ways to start a gloriously bright sunny Monday morning, he just had to find himself ridiculously sprawled across the lap of some stranger whilst giving one heck of show to the rest of the scandalised crowd that was onboard that tiny little compartment of the speedy bullet train.

An uncomfortable sway was initiated by the smooth swerve of the joined compartments, causing tautly pursed lips to unabashedly further press against those parted surprised ones.

…_Peppermint_.

There was a puzzled blink of bright blue.

And an awkward twitch of a fine blond brow.

_Damn._

Oh yes.

Cloud had decided to start his day by latching his lips upon those of a poor unfortunate soul. Mind you, it was one heck of an eye-boggling full blown kiss.

And how did such a grotesquely romantic event happen?

Why, look.

There, shamelessly bared against the floor of the compartment, was a pair of untied shoelaces that were meant to tightly hold together their respective black boots. In short, Cloud had clumsily stepped on his shoelaces, knocked into someone and tripped due to his foolishness of neglecting them in order to make haste to his workplace.

How wonderful.

Cloud twitched his tensed fingers yet once again.

He should pull back, no?

Bright blue eyes simply blinked back in return.

Yes. He should.

Yet before he could do so, an odd thing occurred.

A strange tingling sensation could be felt then as the man's lips quivered a little, slowly yet further parting against his own as if to _deepen_ the kiss even more…those strong confident hands slowly began to make their way up the blond's thighs in smooth tantalising caresses…

A furious blush.

Cloud's eyes widened in sheer horror.

_What the f– __**shit**__!_

Hastily, the blond abruptly pulled away, smacked those audacious hands and distanced himself from the other at arm's length. He stared at the dark-haired man before him, deep blue eyes wide in utmost mortification, as he searched those bright blue ones which curiously peered back into his own.

_H-How…how…!_

Between them, an earphone had awkwardly dislodged itself from the stranger's ear and lightly dangled between them, swinging ever so slightly with the gentle sways of the train as pounding techno beats and scratchy vocals resounded.

A dark brow was then raised and the corner of the man's lips tugged into a lopsided toothy grin. A startlingly dazzling bright one (a result of Shin-Ra's ultra-whitening toothpaste no doubt, the blond man absentmindedly thought).

Cloud pursed his lips tautly and frowned, brows knitted together as shoulders stiffened in affront.

_Unbelievable! He actually–!_

A sudden jerk of the train had occurred and the compartments gradually slowed down, initiating the last stop in Edge. Coincidentally, a comical flail of arms on behalf of a preoccupied blond had also occurred, as an attempt to regain balance.

"Ah-!"

A strong hand reached out and impulsively clasped itself around Cloud's leather clad one. It was a successful act of arresting the graceless toppling of one startled blond off denim clad legs. Not to mention a splendid opportunity for the man to hold him close. And to softly speak into his ear.

"Whoa, there."

The grip around the gloved hand tightened a tad bit.

An involuntary hitching of breath.

"I got you, Spiky…" The delightfully husky whisper was scented with peppermint.

There was a warming of cheeks.

A broadening of a teasing grin.

A twitch of downturn lips.

Cloud, being a man who _detested_ close proximity _and _self-assured_ lecherous_ freaks, furiously shoved himself off the audacious man and briskly exited the train compartment in a rapid shuffle of clomping kick-ass boots (untied shoelaces flailing mercilessly here and there, it was a miracle the blond didn't trip up again) and cheeks burning a vivid red that could damn well rival the fashion model Vincent Valentine's bloody signature cloak.

Swiftly storming down tiled corridors (surprisingly, everyone in his path seemed to steer clear from him with wary looks on their faces), Cloud reached up and furiously wiped the faint residue of blasted peppermint off his lips.

The discontented frown upon his lips was accentuated even more with the furrowing of fine blond brows.

An unconscious gritting of teeth.

_Damn._

Off all the people on the Planet, _his_ kiss had to be swiped away by one obnoxious **flirt**.

How unfortunate it was indeed.

Cursing softly under his breath, Cloud hastily stormed out into the wide streets of Edge in a whim of dark emotions and murderous intent. He narrowed his eyes to adjust to the unpleasant brightness of the glorious morning sunshine that contrasted sharply with his depressingly dark attire.

Really.

A small tug was made with the collar of his zip-up turtleneck, an act which effectively concealed sour frowning lips.

_If that audacious freak decides to show up in my life one more time…_

A scowl. "I'll run him over with Fenrir _and _**back up** for good measure."

**

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**- ****P**** e **p p **e**** r **m** I **n** t**** -**

**a** Z**ac**k x C**lou**d st**or**y

By **s**** u I k a's** **w I n d** o _f_ t h e **c e l e s t I a l**

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**

Now Cloud was used to performing quick and immediate tasks for those who seemed to do things at the last minute, thanks to the time he spent working with Aerith. Months of responding quickly to orders had provided him with that skill of organised composure. He easily held himself together when given the task of sorting out any mess dumped into his lap within a limited amount of time.

Why, working in a tough business in a tough neighbourhood merely meant that Cloud had also equally toughened up over the years, courtesy of dealing with many different people including the unpleasant ones. And it was also merely logical that because of this, Cloud shouldn't be intimidated much by the occasional odd patrons who graced the store with their presence.

Yet…

An irritated twitch of a blond brow.

The clenching of gloved fists.

And surprised light blue eyes blinked from the door at him with recognition.

His criteria definitely **did not** include _him_. _Him _of all people.

Cloud glared, ready to turn his heel and stalk off to the back of the store where he would sit in the old rickety chair ('a keepsake' Aerith calls it as she didn't have the heart to throw it out) and stare at the empty boxes of last week's shipment for all eternity if he so wished. Truth be told, anything was better than looking at _his _face then. Especially if said face started to grin with **revolting cheesiness** in all its ultra-white glory.

Oh yes. It had only been not so long ago (nine days, seven hours and twenty-two minutes to be precise – not that he was counting, of course) since he had encountered with the man. Nevertheless, in spite of such a harmless reunion, Cloud was not very pleased to see this dark-haired rogue-of-a-Casanova (the blond was sure he looked like one, dammit) in the early evening, decked out in a pair of pressed dark trousers and a crisp clean shirt. His tie was loosened, his dark spikes wild and the top two buttons of his shirt was undone. Looking at the long fingers that were fiddling with a cell phone, Cloud was certain that this (very likely) irresponsible man was running late for a promised romantic dinner with a presumed girlfriend who was probably sitting at their nicely set table in their apartment bawling her eyes out. The poor girl.

Cloud frowned a little and watched intently as the man stepped into the shop, a slight spring in each step he took, and approached the other with a sheepish look that greatly contrasted with the blond's deadpan one.

"Hey there. Looks like we meet again, Spiky."

The frown deepened a tad bit, yet it was visible enough to make the stranger from the train broaden his awkward yet charmingly friendly grin.

"You here looking for flowers too?" the man chuckled when Cloud tautly pressed his lips together as he tapped his cell phone against his temple, "Girls. They're quite a handful, aren't they? You have to satisfy their emotional needs every now and then just to convince them that you care. Unbelievable. You got a girl like that?"

An impassive stare.

The grin remained, unwavering. "_Ah_. Single, eh?"

A slight narrowing of deep blue.

And the man laughed heartily. "I envy you, you get all the free time in the world. Us guys with relationships, we're leashed down from almost _anything_. See, girls are _extremely_ possessive, it's scary. Take it from me Spiky, if I were you I'd look for a feminist. Better yet, _don't _go with women _at all_, know what I mean?" A smirk ignited a playful twinkle within blue eyes.

…_tautly pursed lips unabashedly pressed further against parted surprised ones…_

A bristle.

Lips pursed, fingers twitched as cheeks slowly reddened, Cloud turned on his heel and briskly made his way to the store's counter, dismissing the man completely. He gritted his teeth.

How _dare _he, to have the audacity to implicitly state that _he_–!

"Hey Spiky, you know where the florist went? See, I need them to make me a bouquet ASAP before I get decapitated."

Sparkle, sparkle ultra-white teeth.

Glimmer, glimmer – the inaudible jingle of **Gil**.

Grimacing slightly, Cloud reluctantly turned to him. In spite of holding a deep and ever growing dislike for the man before him, he was compelled to bite back any unpleasant remarks and carry on. The man was a **customer** after all. Shunning him away would result to undesirable consequences, especially if one of them included Aerith drawing out her Oaken Pole and deciding to beat him with it.

Moistening his lips and releasing an inaudible defeated sigh, the blond narrowed his eyes a tad bit at the other male and murmured: "I'm the florist."

A look of surprise. "You?"

A twitch of an eyebrow. _Got a problem with that?_

A blink of astonishment. "Like, for real?"

Cloud stiffly nodded in affirmation, clenching his leather-clad fists in annoyance.

Another blink as light blue eyes appraised the blond's edgy dark attire, the amiable grin never relenting. "Whoa. I didn't expect you to be _that _**gentle**, Spiky."

A stiffening of shoulders.

_Are you implying that I'm _**soft** _at the start? _

The man merely grinned.

**Unbelievable**.

Releasing a small miffed grunt, Cloud then pulled his gloves off, tucking them into his pockets and set off to work, drawing various colourful stalks from here and there as he fleetingly acknowledged the scent of peppermint the dark-haired man carried as he trailed after him, chattering away like an ecstatic happy fool.

"Hey, you got a name, Spiky?"

**Ignore.**

"Spiky?"

**Ignore.**

"Hn. You're quite an introvert, are you?" A grin. "All right then, I'll try to guess your name. Heh, this is just like Rumpelstilskin. Right! Here it goes…"

**Ignore.**

"Is it Cactuar?"

Cloud halted in mid-step and bristled, his grip around the flowers had almost loosened. The blond blinked incredulously, utterly gobsmacked. _What did he say? Did he just–!_

"Nah, I think you look more like a Spike. On the other hand, no…you look too much like a Chocobo (you know, that fast food mascot? The one that dances to that irritatingly addictive tune around the screen every hour when you watch television? Heh, of course you do!) so that can't be right…how about an Elliot? Or Vince from Vincent Valentine (Dude, Midgar's sex bomb! He's awesome, isn't he? Love the cloak) or Marché? Scratch that, it must be Jesse, no, a Roestche – that's a name, right? No? My bad – hold it, I think you're a Val. Nope, a Calvin actually. What about Klein? Calvin Klein? No? Alright, what about – wait a second, on second thought you might be a…Ooh, maybe even–!"

Cloud turned on his heel and glared at the other, scowling with utmost displeasure.

The man offered a dazzlingly bright smile. "Hah! It's Rodolpho, isn't it?"

_God __**dammit**__._

A twitch of an eyebrow was accompanied by the tightening of a taut jaw. "…it's Cloud."

"Cloud?" A hearty laugh. "Now _that's_ unexpected."

_Tch._

Chagrined, the blond snatched a few more roses and stormed over to his work table, roughly yanking flowing ribbons and colourful plastics along with him as he reluctantly settled down on his stool and slouched over to work, dismissing the other entirely.

However, it was a fact that bees don't flitter far from their flowers, that flies don't stray away from eye-candy delights and so, it was evident that _this_ particular _fly_ didn't seem very keen on leaving his target. How irksome.

"Name's Zack, by the way," the _fly _said, sidling to a stool beside Cloud, "Nice to meet you Cloudy!" A mock salute was given before those fingers soon brushed aside those messy dark locks from his face in order to make way for the brightening of blue, blue eyes. Another grin of sheer blinding optimism was sent his way. "Cloud…hn, sweet name."

**Ignore.**

Frowning, Cloud picked up the flower stalks and began to deftly arrange them in an attractive assort of colours, shapes and sizes. He arranged them according to colour and texture, placing the intricate elegant ones in the centre whilst wrapping them with strong-stalked vivid ones as a means of support. For Cloud, it was appropriate to arrange these flowers in such a way. Flowers were about relationships, after all. Unconsciously, he was writing a hidden message with the delicate plants, carefully spelling out different meanings that–

"Hmm…you have girlish hands, Cloud. Did you know that?"

_Jerk. _

There was a brutal tightening of ribbons.

_May your relationship __**suffer**__._

* * *

"Don't move."

There was a displeased furrow of fine blond brows, a small frown had surfaced as leather-clad fingers slowly reached up to–

_Swat!_

A grimace.

And a half-hearted scowl. "I said stay put. Why, you really are a baby, aren't you? Come now. Stop sulking, I'll be done in a few moments. Just…"

Delicate fingers gingerly trimmed a flimsy fresh green stalk before lush crimson petals of the flower was placed amongst many that settled within blond spikes. A beautiful smile was found upon pink lips. "There. All done."

Cloud attempted to muster a glare, only to falter when those gentle green eyes met his own. "Aerith…" he softly protested as struggled to refrain himself from tearing out those blasted buds from his hair and mercilessly stomping on them. As a means of compensation however, he half-heartedly resorted to clenching the material of his dark pants. His heavy boot tapped restlessly against the wooden floorboards of the shop.

_Great._

A tentative moistening of lips ensued.

As well as the brightening of a delighted smile.

_Here we go again._

Gush. "Aw, Cloud! You look so pretty! My, I should place you on the display window instead! I'm sure we'll attract more customers that way!" the brunette daintily giggled as she playfully tugged on one of his blond bangs, "Say, how about putting you in a dress, like that time–?"

"No."

"Aw, come now. Don't be such a spoil sport."

A frown. "No."

"Why not?"

A deepening of a frown.

Upon seeing this, Aerith merely smiled and reached over to the man, the tips of her nimble cool fingers touched the skin between his brows. Gently, she smoothened the small creases there. "You know, you're going to age very quickly if you keep doing that."

"Hn."

"Hn," the brunette giggled as she brushed aside the man's bangs, gingerly touching the underside of his chin in order to look in his eyes. "Are you upset?"

Cloud raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "What makes you think so?"

"Well, you seem just so **distant** these past few days. Always caught in deep thoughts when you arrange the bouquets, sometimes (if not, always) staring at your hands…are you alright?"

Almost instantaneously, the blond glanced down at said hands and, with a small grim look, awkwardly tugged at the leather gloves they were clad in.

Hmm. What's this? Self-conscious about your hands which had been dubbed as 'girly' by one obnoxious man, Cloud?

"It's nothing."

However, the young woman didn't look convinced. She merely leaned closer and narrowed her green eyes, searching his deep blue ones. A small smile danced upon her lips. "Nothing?"

Cloud fidgeted.

She leant closer. "Hmm?" A twinkle of warm green.

The blond averted his gaze, although a ghost of a smile could be found on his lips. "Really, it's…" Levelling his gaze with the woman's, he slowly parted his lips to speak when…

"_Cloooouudy!"_

A stretch of awkward silence wedged into the scene.

Aerith blinked.

And Cloud twitched, lips pursed into a grim line as he almost fell off his stool, his ears ringing upon hearing such an unpleasant shrilly croon in the wee minutes of opening time. Leather fingers twitching agitatedly, Cloud fought the urge to scamper away and hide as soon as he heard those familiar springy footsteps make their way deeper into the flower shop and when he felt Aerith's inquisitive eyes upon him. He stiffened.

A tilt of a head was made in mild puzzlement, soft brown curls falling attractively to the side of a pretty face. "Cloud–?"

"Oy, Spiky! Where _are_ you?"

The blond panicked.

He had to run.

A delicate brow was raised. "Cloud?"

"_Cloouud!"_

NOW.

Instantaneously, as if being electrocuted, the dismayed man jumped from his stool and had begun to swiftly make his way to the back door, man-skirt (it definitely was _not_!) flailing and all as he hastily reached for the doorknob and–

"A-_ha! There _youare!"

Cloud froze in mid-step as an unpleasant shudder ran down his spine, causing the functions of his body to cease to an uncalled-for stop. His eye twitched. His boots dug deeper into the floor. And he gritted his teeth.

_Dammit._

Reluctantly, Cloud turned around.

And found himself face to face with the man of his nightmares, the goddamn Devil himself.

Oh yes.

Brandishing a bright grin which flourished in all its spanking ultra-white glory (in courtesy of Shin-Ra's latest and newly improved ultra whitening toothpaste), Zack stood before the shorter man arms akimbo with yet an attractive new feat (minus the lively sparkly glint in his light blue eyes) for there, across one lean tanned cheek, was an enticingly large and cringingly red hand-shaped welt.

In short, it was a slap-mark.

The man had been slapped in the face.

And Cloud, with all his inner sadistic delight, cheered inwardly albeit the extremely displeased frown that had fastened itself upon his lips.

_Hah. Take THAT._

Nevertheless, bruised cheek or not, the grin simply widened as Zack panted heavily, his brown scarf loosely yet stylishly wrapped around his neck in an assumingly hurried manner. Come to think of it, it almost seemed as if the man had just done a good deal of running earlier on (judging from the dishevelled state of the unruly mass of his dark spikes, perspiration and intakes of deep breaths) before gracing the unhappy blond with his pathetically bedraggled sight.

"Yo." The dreadfully cheery grin widened a tad bit more.

And Cloud merely stared back, a deadpan expression fixed upon his face. Strangely, as he and said Devil suddenly found themselves involved in an uncalled-for staring session, he found the situation at hand somewhat amusing and less amusing in one fell swoop.

"……"

"Nice hair. Love the flowers. You going hippie, Cloudy?" Zack looked distressingly merry.

Another grin was shamelessly thrown in – sparkly, sparkly.

And a menacing scowl was simply returned, one that promised instant painful **death**.

_Go. To. HELL._

"Aw, come on! Lighten up a bit, will you Spike? I just came over to say hello…" the dark-haired man pouted, disheartened at such a bleakly hostile greeting on one glorious morning. Tragically, Cloud didn't relent. In fact, he merely sharpened his piercing look with increasing severity.

A disheartened sigh from the dark-haired man. Followed by a deflated look. And another pout.

"Bummer. You are so _not _cute."

The blond bristled. _Who said I was?_

A twitch of a blond brow.

_Prick._

Seeing how fruitless it was to emotively move the stoic man, Zack then looked over his shoulder, those jovial eyes soon lighting up in interest as Aerith stood from her stool and smoothened the front of her dress daintily. He grinned good-naturedly (wolfishly, Cloud thought darkly, clenching his leather-clad fists) and turned to acknowledge her aptly. "Well hello there, and who might this pretty little thing be?"

Aerith, with a faint dust of pink across her cheeks, smiled prettily before giving a small polite bow to the dark-haired man. "Aerith Gainsborough. I'm the owner of the shop. Nice to meet you."

"Aerith, eh? What a lovely name. I'm Zack Fair – the latest addition to the circle of friends for Cloud here. The pleasure's all mine, Miss Gainsborough." Zack gave an amiably charming smile as he courteously bowed back in return before casting a boyish grin over his shoulder at the quietly seething blond (who currently was very well engrossed with trying to drill a hole into the man's head with his piercing stare), "Hey Cloud, you are one lucky devil, you know that? You've got a very beautiful girlfriend. Who would have thought that pretty little you would have grown up so soon…geez, I'm jealous."

As if on cue, Cloud suddenly scowled darkly and Aerith giggled in girlish delight, clearly looking amused, especially when the blond tautened the pursing of his pale lips into a firm thin line. Zack raised an eyebrow at this, seemingly awed by how the shorter man had impossibly become even stiffer than before. Technically speaking, the blond looked like he was ready to decapitate someone in a whim. Rubbing the back of his neck, Zack turned to look at Aerith with a childishly sheepish look upon his face. "Er, was I wrong?"

The brunette smiled merrily back at him, her face prettily flushed as she tried to fan away the little giggles that threatened to bubble up from her once again. "Cloud and I aren't together. We're just close friends."

"Ah, is that so?"

"M-hmm."

A strange glint had ignited behind light blue eyes.

"…I see."

Zack moved closer to Aerith.

There was a stiffening of tense broad shoulders and Cloud narrowed his blue eyes, his fingers twitching restlessly by his sides. _What is he…_

A gentle touch of calloused fingers upon dainty floral-scented hands was made.

A look of surprise graced Aerith's face.

And a charming smile was shamelessly flaunted.

"You know…" Zack caressed the back of her hand, obviously taking in delight at how flustered she was gradually becoming. "If I could arrange the alphabet, I'd put _U_ and _I_ together."

Silence.

The glorious sunshine which filtered through the coloured-glass windows of the shop cast an enchanting glow on the neat racks of flowers around the cosy room, bringing out the fresh vividness of the plants in soft pastel glows.

A blink.

A grin.

A laugh.

Suddenly, the world had stopped rotating.

A red flower had languidly slipped off spiky blond tufts, floating down towards the wooden floorboards in a string of dreamy swirls.

Cloud **choked**.

_No WAY._

He watched the close interaction between the two in sheer horror – how Aerith wholeheartedly laughed and lightly slapped Zack's arm, playfully reprimanding him for his unpardonable cheesiness and how the man, in return, was blatantly showing his obvious growing interest in her by throwing those cheeky little grins and winking with those sparkly blue eyes.

_Unbelievable!_

Cloud was, by all means, utterly appalled. Why, who wouldn't be? See here, the man was harbouring a goddamn bruise on his cheek – the proof, the authentic evidence of his recent break up, for crying out loud! – and he had the audacity to go and hit on another girl (not just any girl, but _his _poor Aerith!) just mere hours (heaven forbid, it could be _minutes_!) later? It was ludicrous! Absolutely unheard of! It was scandalous! Why, the man was nothing but an insatiable_ wolf_!

Cloud scowled darkly and tightly clenched his fists.

Really, the guy was pushing it. Not only did he have the guts to bask in the prickly blond's presence but he decided to further irritate the affronted man with unreserved flirting – yes, _flirting – _with his dear friend.

Good heavens.

A gritting of teeth.

It was **unforgivable**.

Blissfully seething away, Cloud had soon decided to shamelessly resort to heatedly ranting in the dark confines of his mind, all the while tactfully plotting the dark-haired menace's demise. Oh yes. In spite of being a person who detested mindless blood spilling on trivial matters, Cloud truly believed that eliminating this jerk from the face of the planet (i.e. his life) was justifiably worthwhile for–

"Hey Aerith. Do you have any _raisins_?"

A blink, and Cloud looked up (reluctant to emerge from his machinations of doom) in order to observe the seemingly innocent exchange of a new topic between the two before him in a devastatingly sceptical manner. Meaning to say, Cloud could not help but quietly shuffle forward a little to listen in. When Zack saw this however, a small smirk was sent his way. Cloud scowled, annoyed, upon seeing the smugness that danced upon those smiling lips.

An inaudible huff.

_Jerk._

"Raisins?" Aerith frowned at the odd question at hand before shaking her head. "I don't think we do…"

_Of course we don't. This is flower shop, not a grocery store. What is he up to?_

Pursing his lips into a grim line, Cloud then leaned back against a flower-cluttered worktable, his leather-clad fingers absentmindedly touching one of the flowers in his hair as he further eyed the two intently. He then narrowed his eyes when the dark haired man suddenly but leisurely made his way over towards him and decided to comfortably settle beside him, his elbow gently brushing against his own along the way (Cloud just _had _to suppress the urge to shudder in _disgust_). The shorter man bristled but decided to ignore him nonetheless.

"No? That's too bad. Say…" Zack then grinned with utmost charm as his hand leisurely reached up to rake his hand through his dark spiky mop before throwing a flirtatious wink at the pretty brunette. "How about a _date _instead?"

_Oh, sweet Gaia…_

Aerith laughed.

Zack laughed.

And Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose, barely repressing the irresistible urge to hurl their ludicrously **lame **uninvited guest out of the display window.

_Please._

_Get rid of this __**abomination**__._

* * *

To have Zack linger around the shop more often than necessary was slowly yet nevertheless increasingly becoming a common feat to Aerith's store. Why, it appears almost every afternoon (for the past weeks, close to a month and eleven days to be precise! – _not _that Cloud was counting, of course) just after office hours, that the dark haired man would uselessly pop by and simply lounge around the shop, not for the sake of lending a hand to the two devoted florists but for being nothing but an unavoidable nuisance to Cloud what with his 'friendly comments' and fruitless pestering as well as shamelessly flirting with Aerith like there was no tomorrow, occasionally coughing up those horrid chat-up lines (which he had undoubtedly nicked from the internet, Cloud was certain of that).

And so, what with Zack suddenly crashing and forcefully wedging himself into their lives in a most displeasingly uninvited way (via charming little ultra-white grins and those sinfully winking eyes), Cloud had thought it inexorable that the devil of a man was bound to bring random items (from Midgar Fried Chocobos (MFC) chocobo souvenirs to boxes of rainbow-coloured peppermints to one of those hot-selling Buster Blade keychains from that action-packed movie _Advent Children_ to a signed poster of Vincent Valentine and his gorgeous kick-boxer girlfriend, Tifa Lockhart) and undesired trouble (the 'accidental' squashing of Cloud's freshly cut flowers, the scandalous manipulation of Aerith into a conspiracy against the blond – where he was forcefully cornered and used as a sacrificial lamb that would be shamelessly decorated into a flowery Christmas tree fit for the Lifestream) along with him ever since the moment he had stepped into store with that distressingly optimistic smile. Oh yes, Zack was nothing but unsolicited turbulence to the blond's recently screwed up life.

However...

There was a halting of boots.

A loosening of leather-clad fingers around motorbike handles.

The flaunting of a derisive smirk.

"So, you're Cloud. Heh. Much smaller than I expected, yo."

And the widening of deep blue eyes.

This…

_This_…!

Cloud was rendered absolutely **speechless **as he found himself shamelessly gawking at a goddamn Shin-Ra **helicopter** which had been carelessly parked right before him (in the middle of a _residential street_, for heaven's sake!) its scruffily-dressed red-haired pilot leaning nonchalantly against its door as he chewed upon the edge of a half-smoked cigarette and whole-heartedly ignored the coarse words that were thrown at him by disgruntled retreating drivers whose route had been unfortunately blocked by the massive sky monster.

_This is __**unbelievable!**_

"A florist, eh? I see." A broadening of a lopsided grin, "I like the bike. Harley-Datona, isn't it? Nice choice, yo."

Still astonished, the blond merely blinked back owlishly.

_Good Gaia..._

Another blink for clarification.

_How the _hell_ – _

There was a sudden waft of cool fresh mint.

And the arrival of a strangely welcomed warmth.

"–did you steal _that_?" Zack suddenly appeared beside Cloud with his arm casually slung around the shorter man's shoulders, voicing out his exact thoughts with a jaunty grin upon that ever so jovial face. "A helicopter? Geez Reno, you're unbelievable!"

_Reno?_

With the appearance of Zack into the scene, the red haired man seemed to relax a little before casting the both of them an easy smirk. "Hey, I'm only giving this little baby a spin around town. Just a little test drive, yo. She just arrived, see?"

_Unbelievable! He stole a helicopter from Shin-Ra?!_ Cloud thought incredulously as he continued to gawk at the massive body of congregated metal in shamefaced stupor. Brand new, costing mega bucks, belongs to one of the most powerful men on the Planet – good gracious! The man must be a notoriously talented criminal! And Zack knows _him_?!Pray tell, was he involved with some criminal syndicate?

"–Yeah even Rude was impressed this little beauty. Top notch, just shipped in from Junon and – h-hey! What are you–! Look here, I got approval from one of them big shots, alright? I mean, even Rude was there! Jeez!" A foul curse was spat out and the cigarette was squashed into the pavement. "Dammit, your kind just question too much. Tch, I don't know why I know you."

There was a twinkle in bright blue eyes and an unconscious firming of grasp around Cloud's shoulder, unwittingly bringing the two bodies closer. "Man love, yo. Man love," Zack leisurely replied with an upturn of lips.

Cloud frowned, his nose twitching at the overwhelming scent of peppermint (which literally seemed to ooze from the taller man).

Reno raised an eyebrow.

And Zack merely broadened his smile.

A noncommittal shrug. "Yeah? Pfft, whatever." Pushing himself off the helicopter, the red-haired man then made his way over to the two men and slouched before Cloud with an unpromising grin upon his face. "Tsk. You coming or what, yo?" he asked Zack. "Or are you gonna let me have a good time and feel up little blondie here?"

Cloud bristled, clearly affronted.

There was promiscuous wiggle of quick red brows.

A narrowing of deep blue eyes.

As well as the release of a mirthful laugh, which had bubbled from Zack.

Cloud opened his mouth, "Screw you."

And then, in an awkward flurry of stiff arms and metallic buckles, he roughly shrugged the dark haired man's arm off him and stomped his way over to his dearly beloved Fenrir, mounting it as soon as he roughly secured his delivery box at the back, all the while muttering inaudible curses under his breath. Stupid Zack and his weird associations with criminals and the like. Really, it was crazy enough that he brought oddity into _his_ life (and Aerith's as well! Oh, the poor naïve girl!) but dropping in an _outcast –_ an undesired member of society into the latter was just–just–!

He turned the ignition and the motorbike roared into life.

"Hey, w-wait! Spike!" It was Zack.

The blond gripped the handles of his bike tightly, his leather-clad fingers twitched, the sole of his left boot remained upon the asphalt pavement – and he actually _paused_ to **listen**.

A small discreet glance over a shoulder was made through lowered lashes.

_What?_

Zack, noticing the fact that he had succeeded in catching the silent blond's attention, flashed one of his best ultra-white grins in a suspiciously sickly sweet manner (Cloud just had to refrain himself from driving off then). "Um…can…can you get me some MFC? The Special Joy meal? I heard they're actually selling those dancing chocobos. You know, like the one on TV – I think I showed it to you last time, didn't I? I didn't? Oh darn, you should have seen it – the one where the chocobo bobs around the screen and starts warking out a tune that sounds a little like Jaws – eh? Wait, no that can't be right. Jaws sounds way too scary – nah, I think it sounded a bit like…shit. Argh, dammit! It was in my head a minute ago! Seriously! I dubbed it 'Cloud's Theme Song' because it really, _really _suits you Spike! Like for real, I mean you could even dance to it-" (At this moment, Cloud could feel his eye beginning to twitch) "-but it slipped my mind and – dammit, Reno! What the hell? Help me out here, you good for nothing prick! Don't you start laugh– aww, come on! I know you know the song! I mean, I heard you and Rude – what? Why you–!"

In the midst of Reno's chortling and sneering remarks on the taller man's childish nature, Cloud could not help but release a small heavy sigh.

…_Idiot._

Without glancing back, Cloud kicked off from the pavement and surged forward and down the street, heading towards the destination of his waiting client in a flurry of blond spikes and ruffling dark clothes.

"Whatever."

But there was a ghost of a smile upon his lips.

* * *

"What the f___is **this**? You playing with _me_? Bloody florist, why the hell are you f____ late? You dirty little s___! What kind of business are you running here, _eh_?" Cid Highwind hollered, his spanner restlessly tightening a few bolts as he kept an eye on the quiet blond who had just calmly entered the garage with a nonchalant air about him. In spite of spitting out nasty vulgarities and revelling in the sheer power the older man held over the poor verbally-abused florist, Cid flashed the man a good-natured grin as he heaved himself out from underneath of one the cars to make his way over to Cloud, who cradled a small bouquet of golden flowers within the grasp of his leather-clad fingers.

"Well now, what a f____ splendid job you did there, eh? That's a pretty shiny goddamn bouquet, if you ask me! F___ little b____, you didn't bloody paint 'em gold now, did you eh?" the older man smirked through a half-smoked cigarette which hung from his mouth, eyes peering ever so menacingly down at him.

"Aerith picked these flowers especially for you, Cid. So do be careful with the ribbons," Cloud calmly replied as the older man carefully eased the bouquet from his grasp and placed it on his distressingly cluttered desk.

"Yeah? Great girl, ain't she? A real darling, she is. Thank her for me when you see her eh, Blondie? Go on, make yourself at home. It's f____ hot today, ain't it? Dammit, I swear I'm being f____ roasted the s___ out of me right now! Sonova…jeez, stop standing around like some f____ pogo stick! Go in and pour yourself some goddamn tea, will ya? And – what the! – argh, to hell! Bloody kids! What the hell are you doing here!? Damn brats…get off them wheels, you little twits else I –! Why you! F___ little runts…come here, you! I'm gonna smack those s___ little brains with my–!"

A muddled collection of childish giggles and sing-song taunts was heard with the pattering of little feet across warm rubber tyres and rock-hard concrete.

A coarse word was spluttered.

And off went the raging mechanic, out into the brilliant glare of sunlight, his strong arm furiously swinging a spanner above his sweaty blond head in a dangerously alarming manner.

Which, nonetheless, triggered a jumbled sequence of frightened and gleeful squeals from the pestering little boys and girls.

"Retreat! Retreat!"

"Hurry everyone! Quick!"

"Come on!"

"Aah! Run for it! The old man is coming!"

A strangled choke. "Ol-_Old man_?! Come here, you damn brats! I'm gonna wring your necks and gouge those damn eyes out with my spanner! Who're you calling old?! I'll break your f_____ bones and – no! Don't touch that, don't! – why you little s____, I'm gonna _kill _you! I'm gonna – hey, get back here you good-for-nothing little…!"

More gleeful laughter.

And off went Cid, spitting out every single rainbow-painted word he seemed to possess in his ever so colourful dictionary.

Cloud sighed deeply, a faint smile of amusement upon his lips as he retreated deeper into the dark garage and settled at the mechanic's cluttered desk, his hands mindlessly pouring a cup of iced tea. Carefully curling his fingers around the cool glass, he slowly raised it to his parted lips when his eye caught the gold sheen of the purchased bouquet and the glossy cover of the latest _MINUTE_ magazine tucked neatly beneath it.

_MINUTE Special Edition:_

_The first rare interview with General Sephiroth, 'the Leader of Tomorrow'._

An eyebrow was raised.

"Cid reads world affairs?"

Unconsciously reaching forward as he lowered his glass, Cloud drew the magazine closer to him, his eyes taking in the cover photo of a dauntingly beautiful man with long silver hair and piercing green eyes.

_This is General Sephiroth…?_

Awed, his fingers soon ghosted across the pages, deftly flipping through each leaf until he finally reached the centre of the magazine where a large photograph could be found, of Sephiroth looking beautifully grave as he sat comfortably in a leather armchair that was placed before an exquisite fireplace. His sharp eyes transfixed with the flames within the hearth.

…_For the first time ever in an exclusive interview conducted by MINUTE's Zack Fair, General Sephiroth speaks of his life, his incredible experiences in the military, and his potential future as…_

……

_**Wait**__._

Cloud blinked twice.

_WHAT?_

And read the sentence again.

Once. Twice. No, make that _three_ times.

…_interview conducted by MINUTE's Zack Fair._

…_by MINUTE's Zack Fair._

…_**Zack Fair.**_

Instantaneously, images began to flash through his mind: of sinfully winking blue eyes, peppermint rolls and MFC chocobo souvenirs; of slap-marks, earpieces and silky ribbons; of dark unruly spikes, ultra-white grins and one purely accidental peppermint-flavoured **kiss**.

_Shit._

There was an uncharacteristic widening of deep blue eyes.

A weakening of grasp – the magazine slipped through leather-clad fingers and dropped to the floor with an elegant flop.

And a strangled choke.

_No WAY._

Cloud backed away from the cluttered desk of rusty tools, broken gadgets and gizmos and golden ribbon-laced flowers in a series of clumsy clomps and trudges.

"Y-You _can't_ be serious!"

Simply said, the poor blond was downright **appalled**.

Why, who would have thought that Zack –for **god's sake, **of all people, _Zack_ – was actually a top journalist from the planet-renowned world affair magazine, MINUTE? What with his wayward and lackadaisical ways towards life and his audaciously flirtatious manner to every single female (and _male!) _who happened to walk past? What with his cheesiness, strange sense of humour _and _his incurable itch of annoying Cloud senseless on a daily basis (be it be a complete nuisance to him, ruffling his hair or even flirting with Aerith at a range where Cloud could easily throw a flower pot at him point blank). Plus, there was the fact that the man was also involved with that red-haired crook. Why, how could someone so _careless_ like Zack end up with such a secure, upright and _serious _job?

Clearly, something was amiss.

Cloud just could not approve this. He _would not_.

A careless toss of a spanner into a toolbox was heard from behind him, an act followed by a heavy sigh and a spiteful curse. Cid had returned into the cool shadiness of the garage. "Bloody kids…giving me a headache every f____ day! I swear, one of these days I'm gonna – eh? What the – sweet mother of…hey, Blondie! What the hell happened to you? And what – what's that look for eh, punk? You – hey! Where you going? Oy! That's my mag, you – and that's my – dirty little b____! Tsk, and good day to you too!"

A powerful roar from an engine.

And off went Cloud, in a flurry of blond spikes and dark clothes, with a pair of sunglasses (he'll return them to Cid later) elegantly perched upon the slender bridge of his nose and the latest issue of MINUTE tightly clutched within his relentless grasp.

A gritting of teeth.

_Tch._

"Stupid Zack–"

* * *

"–**Explain.**"

Zack blinked.

And Cloud merely glared up, panting heavily, his eyes glinting dangerously over the top of the magazine he had thrust between them. From the corner of his eye, he could see Reno looking towards them with mild interest, like a spectator towards an impending disaster.

Damn right, there was going to be a disaster – if genius over there doesn't speak up anytime soon.

Satisfied with the fact that Reno wasn't going to intrude into their affair (it sure looked like he wasn't, he seemed particularly engrossed with his cell phone now), Cloud nudged the magazine towards the taller man in order to prod an answer from him. However, another blink was all he received in return.

Nudge_._

_Blink._ _Blink._

Tch.

_Nuisance_.

In the midst of ragged pants, hushed sucking of peppermint rolls and successive blinking, Zack raised an eyebrow. And Cloud frowned.

Another stubborn nudge was made.

Another blink was returned.

A pregnant pause wedged in.

Within the long stretch of silence that had draped across them, nothing had happened. Nothing but a strange staring session which had somehow occurred between them. It was like that time when Zack first crashed into the store and obliviously messed up their lives. They just _stared._

And stared.

And stared.

And then.

Zack grinned, his fingers deftly plucking the magazine from Cloud's grasp before he leaned down, closing in the space that was left between them.

_What the–!_

Alarmed by the unexpected closeness and how disturbingly warm his face had suddenly become because of this, Cloud jerked away hastily. However, such a brash act though only caused the clumsy staggering of boots and the beginnings of a graceless stumble.

"Sh-!"

Cloud's eyes widened, his body tipping back towards nonentity as he hastily reached out and–

The magazine dropped.

In an instant, the overwhelming scent of peppermint and the intensity of light blue eyes was all Cloud could register as he soon found himself practically clinging to Zack with one hand buried deep in his dark hair, his fingers roughly clenching those unruly spikes in a tight grip. Zack, on the other hand (who winced at the pain from Cloud's relentless clutch), looked equally surprised yet unsurprised at this as he held Cloud firmly by the hips to arrest the momentum of their fall. He stared at Cloud who was gawking stupidly up at him in return, like a baby would to a hanging mobile.

Well, well.

At the other side of the room, Reno looked up, only to raise an eyebrow at the spectacle he was presented with. Zack. Cloud. Poised in an awkward embrace, like two novices about to dance.

This certainly is interesting.

A smirk was all the pilot mustered then before he delved back into further instant messaging and ignored them.

_Hn._

"So you found out."

A blink.

Stare.

"…huh?"

Zack chuckled at this, seemingly amused with the situation at hand. No, scratch that. In fact, he seemed to be _enjoying _all of this. Especially with the fact that Cloud wasn't making any move to clobber him as he usually would.

He beamed brightly.

And Cloud inwardly smacked himself, feeling utterly mortified with the fact that his brain power seemed to lag then and how his body shamelessly hung limply against Zack's, like a broken puppet with no strings attached.

Oh, and don't forget the fact that Reno was still in the room, smirking ever so wickedly in the corner somewhere (even though he was still engrossed with his phone, it was disturbing for _someone else_ to witness _this _just as it was disturbing enough for _him_).

_Dammit._

Chagrined by this, the blond was finally able break out of his stupor and show some response to the dark-haired nuisance before him. He frowned.

Another chuckle was all that Zack rewarded him with before he straightened his back, pulling Cloud along with him to his feet. "Surprised?"

Gently, Zack's fingers then took hold of Cloud's leather-clad ones, slowly – oh so _very_ slowly, from one finger to the next – untangling them from his hair, the tips of his fingers (strangely calloused for someone who works in the office – could it be paper cuts?) brushing ever so carelessly against his slender pale wrist with teasing feather-light touches as if to map and _memorise _the softness of the skin–

Flustered, Cloud roughly withdrew his hand from the dark-haired man clutches and placed a good distance between them, scowling at him for a moment before he picked up the magazine from the floor and dropped it on Aerith's workbench which was still cluttered with bits of golden flowers. "Why didn't you tell?"

"Well. _You_ never asked me."

_**Excuse me?**_

Incredulous by such a statement, Cloud looked over his shoulder, his deep blue eyes soon narrowing a tad bit in annoyance as soon as he caught the upturn of those wicked lips. Well now. It seems Zack looks awfully dashing with that dreadful smile upon his face. Don't you agree, Cloud dear?

The blond frowned.

"Tsk."

_It's __**not**__ like I'm interested._

Turning back to the cluttered workbench, Cloud decided to occupy himself with clearing away the mess on the table (and hide the small stubborn blush that threatened to climb his cheeks). "Aerith." He snatched up a pair of garden scissors and tossed them unceremoniously into the drawer before he began to sweep the pieces of stalk and golden petals into the wastepaper basket with strong precise strokes of his arm. "Why didn't you tell Aerith?"

"Aerith?" The blond could hear the amused smile that was dancing upon Zack's lips. "She already knows."

A blink.

And Cloud ceased his sweepings.

_Ah?_

Unthinkingly, he turned and stared bewilderedly at Zack, who had somehow managed to sidle over and settle down upon the stool beside him (_peppermint, good Gaia, the scent of peppermint is EVERYWHERE)_, a ultra-white grin now gracing his jovial face.

Upon seeing the befuddled look on the blond's face, the grin brightened. "M-hmm. She does. And she knows Reno as well. Introduced her to him last week – oh, and Rude too – who are _not_ criminals or part of any syndicates, as _you_ might have thought (Aerith was right about that imaginative mind of yours). **In fact**, believe it or not, they're actually _milkmen_–" Upon hearing this, Reno squawked in outrage and started spluttering out some gibberish about being Shin-Ra Turks and blah – all by which Zack blissfully disregarded as he carried on talking. "–Oh, you might be wondering how the hell did I end up working for MINUTE. Well, the thing is my mentor – Angeal, pretty tall guy that people keep mistaking as my relative…eh? Don't know him? You can find him lingering around gardening stores sometimes or at the groceries picking out apples, especially the Banora White ones. Ooh, you might catch him staring at the windows of pet stores too! He's got a soft spot for puppies, see? Uh-huh, check those spots and you won't miss him! – was the one who recommended me to them (can you believe my essay on MFC and Chocobo Rights was a major hit? MINUTE actually published it in the next issue the second I started working for them!) and the next thing I knew I was working there, right alongside Angeal, covering major stories from all around the Planet. Heh, who would have thought that people would actually enjoy my rambling eh? Hmm? What's up? Oh, you're wondering how I managed to get hold of Seph? Heh. It was pretty easy. Believe it or not, but he and Angeal are actually **best friends**. M-hmm. For real and – ooh, you know Genesis? Midgar's top actor, one of the leading men in that hit musical LOVELESS, the guy that was voted as one of Midgar's beautiful men? Yep, that's him alright – Yeah, he's also Angeal's buddy. The three of them have been, like, best friends since _forever. _Pretty cool, huh? Speaking of which…Ah! That's right! I should buy Angeal a bouquet as a sorry present for ditching him last time in order to come and – oh, and Genesis too! For his, um, opening thing for…something and – whoa! And don't forget one for Seph! Heard the poor guy's caught a cold or something. See, he should have listened to Angeal when he told him to go to the doctor last time but he didn't. Jeez. Seriously, that guy should ditch that stubborn attitude of his! Just because he's–!"

Amidst the incessant vigorous rambling that seemed to simply spew out from the boisterous (recently discovered) journalist, Cloud released a long deep sigh and continued to sweep away the flower bits from the worktable when the door opened to reveal Aerith's beautiful smile and a large MFC plastic bag held within the grasp of her delicate fingers: "I'm back!"

Blocking out the excited cheers from Zack (who had bounded over in order to coax Aerith into handing over his stupid Special Joy meal, like a spoilt child for presents during Christmas) and the playful jeers thrown towards him by Reno (who had finally decided to give his phone a rest and interact with real human beings), Cloud could not help but allow a small smile to touch his lips as soon as those beautiful green eyes met his.

"Welcome back."

* * *

A small yawn was followed by a few sluggish blinks of blue eyes. Slightly dazed, Cloud reached up and furiously rubbed his throbbing temple, all the while peering down bleakly at the colourful variety of flowers that lay on the workbench before him.

He had been working on these flowers for quite sometime now, in one of the rarest periods of his recently screwed-up life where it was actually quiet. Quiet meaning that a particular dark-haired disaster and his red-headed menace-of-a-sidekick weren't lurking around the store with nasty grins on their faces and an insatiable appetite to exasperate the daylights out of him. It had been a few months or so (three months, one week and four days to be precise – and Cloud was definitely _not _counting, dammit) since Reno had made a delightfully smashing entrance into Cloud's screwed-up life and, like Zack, the daily afternoon visits from both men have comfortably made themselves customary to both florists' lives.

Really, they were like two irritating flies. Clearly unwanted, yet still loitering around. It was a terrible fact that there are many things in life that you will _never _accomplish. In this case, Cloud's greatest wish (strengthened with the resolute thought of wanting them OUT) was doomed to be unaccomplished because it seemed that the more he pushed those bugs away, the more they seemed to simply stick to him. Especially that stupid, deceitful little–

"_Clooooudy!"_

Twitch.

A frown. And Cloud picked up the stalk of a plum-coloured flower before he proceeded to the diabolical task of mercilessly shearing it as soon as the epitome of nuisance (and the root of his splitting headaches) bounded into the room and brightened the dreary gloom within it with a notorious blinding ultra-white grin.

"A-ha! Gotcha!"

Great. And just when he thought he could _finally _have some well-sought peace.

A deep sigh was accompanied with a defeated slouch of shoulders and a brutal snip of scissors. "What is it?"

"Aerith wants you upfront. Some kids just came by. Said they wanted to see you."

_Kids? _Cloud looked up from the flowers at this, surprised, his fingers ceasing their ruthless tending. "Marlene?"

There was a strange look (_what is it? – surprise? astonishment?_)on Zack's face. "…erm, yeah. I…think so."

Standing up from his stool, the blond wiped his hands against the dark material of his pants (mentally taking note to stash away the remains of the poor dismembered flower – Aerith was likely to beat him with her pole if she ever found out he had murdered one of her plants) before briskly leaving the room to make his way quickly to the front of the store where Aerith was crouching down and talking to a girl who clutched the body of a smiling _Cait Sith _doll. Nearby, surmising the freshly watered flowers with calculative eyes, was a boy who turned to acknowledge him with a small smile as soon as he entered the room.

Upon seeing the blond, the girl beamed brightly. "Cloud! You're here!" With a happy little giggle, she bounded over and the florist ruffled her hair with noticeable affection.

"It's been some time since Marlene came over, hasn't it, Cloud?" Aerith said as she straightened to her feet, placing the watering can on the counter daintily.

Cloud nodded, his eyes softening a tad bit as those doe eyes merely looked up at him with pure earnestness. "How's your dad?" he asked quietly.

"Papa's fine. But he's been stuck working at the mines for some time so I don't see him much. He hasn't come home in weeks…but that's okay, because Denzel always comes over to play with me so I don't get bored."

"Denzel eh?" Zack entered the room then. Standing beside Aerith at the counter, he grinned good-naturedly at the boy who eyed him sceptically in return. "You look like a good kid who deserves a great role model like _me_. Name's Zack, one of the greatest buddies your bro Cloud had the pleasure of ever being acquainted with. How's it hanging, kiddo?"

A hand was offered.

There was a broadening of a grin.

A pointed stare.

And Denzel simply frowned.

"Whoa! Unbelievable! He's the splitting image of Spiky!"

Cloud quietly sighed as Aerith giggled at this, watching Denzel bristle with annoyance (Zack seemed to find this amusing as he reached over to ruffle the boy's hair, only to grin widely at Cloud when Denzel glared) before turning his attention to Marlene (wholly ignoring the strangled squawk Zack seemed to make at the act), who clutched her doll closely to her. "Are you looking for something in particular?"

"Not really. We just came by to say hi. Big sis was right, it's been a while since we came over to visit."

A nod and Cloud could not help but touch the crown of the girl's head fondly, smiling a little when he spotted the pink ribbon that was fastened to her hair. It was just like Aerith's. "You've grown. How about I give you a bouquet as a present?"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Marlene beamed, bubbling with cheerfulness as she tugged on his hand, pointing towards –

_SLAM!_

"ALRIGHT, WHICH ONE IS ZACK'S PRETTY?"

Cloud flinched at the sound of the wood smacking against the plaster (he could have sworn he heard something crack) and turned towards the customer who had almost destroyed the store's entrance with startling brute force, his eyes wide with unadulterated surprise and barely-concealed disbelief.

_What in Gaia's name…?_

There, with her hand still clutching the doorknob in a merciless grasp, stood a young woman with short black hair and a pair of inquisitive eyes that seemed to sparkle wildly as they skimmed the room and the dumbfounded individuals that stood within it. She pursed her lips determinedly, appraising each person in a disturbingly meticulous manner before her eyes eventually settled on the rigid figure of Cloud.

A pause.

An exchange of unwavering stares.

And then, the woman suddenly _smirked_.

Cloud frowned, feeling somewhat affronted. Who on earth does she think–?

"Oy! The hell you doing, barging in like a goddamn elephant? Damn brat."

The woman yelped when a hand suddenly grabbed the back of her shirt and yanked her a few steps backwards, an act which merely announced the entrance of a familiar scruffily-dressed man who now had a pair of brand-new goggles perched upon his head. Reno clicked his tongue, annoyed as the woman snapped at him whilst shaking her fist.

"Reno! Unhand me, you big goofball! How dare you roughly grapple a Wutaian beauty like me and manhandle her like a sack of potatoes? Jerk, let go of me!"

"Shut your trap, you broken gramophone. You're giving me a headache."

"B-Broken gramophone? Why you–_you_–!"

"Um, can I help you?"

Upon hearing the genteelness of Aerith's question, the pair ceased their squabbling and looked at the brunette who had bravely stepped away from the counter and stood before them with a pretty smile. Instantly the woman violently shoved Reno away from her and presented the surprised brunette with a friendly grin. "No, no! I'm really sorry for the racket Mr Drama King caused – see, he really is a brute who just grates on my nerves – doesn't know how to treat a lady! Huh! Men these days! Oh, how rude of me to not introduce myself. Hi, I'm Yuffie Kisaragi and you must be Aerith, right? Yeah, I heard a lot about you from Reno. How's Zack? Has he, like, been behaving himself lately or is he still that ostentatious freak who enjoys doing squats twenty-four-seven?"

"Hey! What gives?" Zack sounded off from a corner.

"Oh, you're here. I didn't see you standing there with little Blondie. Tsk, why are you interrupting us? Bug off, this is girl talk – go and play toy soldiers with pretty boy there. So tell me Aerith, has Zack been acting as a prick towards you? What? He hasn't? No way! That's unbelievable! You see, it's –"

Cloud tore his gaze away from the two women, fleetingly taking note of the fact that Marlene and Denzel were now in the company of Reno and were looking up at the pilot with curiosity as he rambled on and on about helicopters and Turks and such, before his eyes eventually settled on the man who stood comfortably close to him, watching the scene before them with unexpected calmness.

The faint scent of peppermint lingered in the air.

"You don't seem surprised," Cloud murmured.

Zack merely cast a small smile his way, along with a noncommittal shrug of shoulders. "It was to be expected. Whatever Reno knows, Yuffie knows."

Cloud suddenly felt a tick developing in his eye and he pursed his lips into a small frown.

_So you planned this ambush on purpose?_

A ultra-white grin was shamelessly flashed.

And a small sigh was released.

_Figures._

Really, there were times when Cloud felt the oh so very sweet urge to wallop the older man. He pinched the bridge of his nose in hopes of easing the throbbing of his temple. Good gracious, one of these days, he was going to–

"Hey, Cloud."

An annoyed _tsk._ "What is it–" His eyes widened.

There was a smooth swish of dark locks.

A glimmer of laughing bright blue eyes.

And long deft fingers latched around his bare wrist, curling ever so gently yet firmly, before tugging the blond towards him with little force.

"Come on."

Dumbfounded by the childish glee that suddenly lit Zack's face up, Cloud unwittingly found his feet following the man's lively springy steps as he led him towards the back of the flower shop. Specifically, the back door.

_Wait._

Cloud feebly tugged his arm, noting how warm Zack's fingers were as they carefully embraced his wrist in a firm grasp. _Where are we–_

"How's MFC to you?"

"What?"

With a rough twist of a doorknob, the door swung open and a pool of bright light washed into the room all of a sudden as soon as bright blue eyes glanced back at him, sparkling.

Zack smiled. "My treat."

Cloud stared, a surprised look lighting his features as he blinked owlishly up at those bright blueeyes that looked ever so earnestly at him.

_Thump._

There was a tentative moistening of lips.

_Thump._

A forceful digging of soles into wooden floorboards.

_Thump_.

And a small promising squeeze around a pale slender wrist, which triggered a small blush across pale cheeks.

_THUMP._

Cloud averted his gaze and pursed his lips. "…hn."

A beam and Zack, in all his vivacious gusto, burst through the opened door and vigorously made his way down the street towards the nearest joint of the popular fast-food franchise with a scowling florist grudgingly clinging to his arm. "Alright! MFC Limited Edition Discotheque Chocobo, here we come!"

"Stop that. You're attracting unnecessary attention."

Paying no heed to the blond's discomfort, the dark-haired man merely cheered with enthusiasm (goodness, was he trying to _dance _as well?), oblivious to the amount of strange looks they were receiving from the pedestrians they passed.

Good heavens.

_How embarrassing._

Cloud fought the urge to run away then. Instead, he simply resorted to staring at his boots as they strangely fell into synchronism with Zack's sneakers.

Right, left, right, left.

Amidst the distressingly cheerful humming of theme songs, the overly lively strides and the ceaseless strings of chastises, Cloud could not help but notice how strangely comfortable Zack's fingers were around his wrist.

And how much his heart seemed to throb at the mere thought.

**

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**A/N:** Good gracious. I just had to stop it there because 1) it was getting a little _too _long for a one-shot and 2) I actually FORGOT what happens after this scene because I have stupidly misplaced my little paper full of claptraps (aka teh plotline). D: How troublesome. Nevertheless, I'll try to update as fast as I can IF I'm able to recall the rest of the plot or if I've managed to find that godforsaken paper. In the mean time…

Drop a little **review **to make a poor, dog-tired authoress to make her uberly-happy (and convince her not to abandon this story if all seems lost)?


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